267: Unleash The Negotiations Ninja Within with Mark Raffan

Today I’m joined by Mark Raffan, serial entrepreneur, procurement veteran and expert in negotiation, influence, and persuasion. He’s the founder of Negotiations Ninja – designed to improve performance with training and improve results with coaching, the company develops and delivers engaging negotiation training to world-class procurement and sales teams. Mark is also the founder and host of the Negotiations Ninja Podcast, the number one negotiations podcast in the world, in which he interviews negotiation, sales, and procurement thought leaders and shares the tools, strategies and tactics you need to succeed. Today Mark joins me to chat all about Negotiations Ninja: what they do; the importance of negotiation in supply chain; procurement and supply chain collaboration; and his top tips for navigating a post-pandemic work environment.   IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS:   [06.48] The landscape of negotiation, why it’s so important and how it fits into supply chain. “We’re living in such a strange time when it comes to supply chain shortages, blockages, inflationary environments… and without good negotiation skills, it’s really hard for us to get deals that make sense for our organization.” [11.29] Collaboration, and who needs to come together to achieve negotiation success. “Get people from supply chain and procurement together, we already have a really great relationship… and we need to rely on each other a little bit more.” [13.59] An overview of Negotiations Ninja – what they do, and how they help their customers. “The objective for our negotiations is ‘get a good deal’ – but most of us don’t even know what a good deal actually means, because we haven’t defined it.” [17.39] Mark’s background, and the career journey that led him to negotiation. [19.32] Navigating a post-pandemic work environment, how things have changed and Mark’s top tips for managing digital negotiations. [27.13] The benefits of working with Negotiations Ninja, and a closer look at their services. [30.12] An example of how Negotiations Ninja typically works with a customer, and how quickly that business can see significant ROI. “You’re going to see a massive risk reduction, you’re going to start seeing cost management… but more than that, it starts to teach people how to think strategically about their relationships.” [32.50] The ideal client for Negotiations Ninja. [33.56] A snapshot of Mark’s Procurement Fundamentals program. [35.36] The future for Negotiations Ninja. [36.44] Mark’s one key takeaway from today’s discussion.   RESOURCES AND LINKS MENTIONED:   Head over to Negotiations Ninja’s website now to listen to the podcast, find out more and discover how they could help you too. You can also connect with Negotiations Ninja and keep up to date with the latest over on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, or you can connect with Mark on LinkedIn or Twitter. Check out our other podcasts HERE.